issue 06 / volume 41

    

 

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» Protests are necessary for democratic Hong Kong future

Elliot Chan

-. Opinions Editor
gi .

a) M opinions

4 @theotherpress.ca

 
  

here is certainly more to

the Hong Kong protest
situation than what we see
and hear on television and
the Internet. With a foreign
eye though, I can only assume
that those protesters are just
striving for what we have here
in Canada—surely that cannot
be wrong, although the method
of obtaining it’s not necessarily
kosher.

When a chief executive
is elected by a 1,200-member
committee for a region of
over seven-million people,

: that can hardly be defined

: as democracy; the same

: democracy that was promised
in 1997 when Hong Kong was

: handed back to be ruled under
: the Chinese “one country,

: two system” structure; the

: same democracy that citizens

: of Hong Kong have still yet

to experience; and the same

: democracy that mainland

: China is now keeping at arm’s

: length, making protocols

: ever harder for equality to be

: achieved. The word democracy
: is a lie. So began the unrest in

: Hong Kong that resulted in

: 80,000 people crowding the

: streets, using umbrellas to fend
: off law enforcers armed with

: tear gas.

“Crowded” is the apt word

: for life in that metropolitan

: city. My father spent much of

: his childhood and teenage years
: there, and I continue to have

: family residing in Hong Kong;

: what they always tell me is that
: the conditions are cramped.

: A living area the size of a
Yaletown micro-suite, with far
: less lavishness, will commonly
: house a family of four, five, six,
: seven, and more. I should be

: grateful, they hint.

Although Hong Kong is

a main hub for international

: commerce and is an economic
: powerhouse, the citizens are

: not wealthy. The majority

: are middle-class and they are

: getting by. In addition to this,

When entering the political scenario

» Can politicians be honest and have integrity?

Margaret Matthews
Senior Columnist

pon hearing the news
that New Brunswick
has recently elected a new
premier, 32-year-old Brian
Alexander Gallant—a Liberal,
who graduated from McGill
University with a Masters
in law, and practiced law
in New Brunswick—my
first impression was that
he’s a clean-cut, dynamic,
and promising young man.
Subsequently, Gallant
appeared on public television
and said that he was humbled
to be given the opportunity
to serve New Brunswickians,
and that his top priority
in government will be job
creation, education and
training, and changing the
political culture.

He is acclaimed as
Canada’s youngest premier,
and while some young
people have maturity and

: wisdom beyond their years,

: oftentimes in political circles
: the environment clouds their
: integrity. “By beholding we

: become changed” is an adage
: that is true in many cases.

Environment shouldn't

: play an important part in

: making decisions, and no

: matter what goes on around

: in the political arena by way

: of manipulation, conniving,

: bribery, and corruption.

: Politicians can be honest and
: have integrity, like the water
: lily that remains clean while
growing in a stagnant pond.

When a politician

: fails with the first lapse of

: integrity—be it ever so trivial—
: their reputation invariably

: may spiral downward, until the
: misdemeanours continue and

: escalate to larger scales. And

: when there is accountability

: and transparency required of

: them, they are put to shame;

: citizens who placed their faith

: and trust in the politician as

: their leader will regret having

: elected them into office.

I reflected on some of the

: other politicians who have

: misappropriated thousands of
: dollars and have made gross

: indiscretions in utilizing the

: taxpayer’s money to fund their
: own personal expenses like

: family weddings, pleasure

: trips, and vacation homes.

: Justice has to be meted out;

: they need to be removed from
: office or be required to pay

: back everything that they took
: unethically.

It’s important to realize

: that politicians’ actions,

: behaviour, conduct, lifestyle,
: and the decisions they make
: will be closely scrutinized

: by the general public. Their

: reputation is at stake, so

: it would be in their best

: interests to live an exemplary
: lifestyle and be a role model

: to their constituents. Voters

: will undoubtedly be proud of
: them, and not regret having
elected them into office as

: political leaders.

 
     

ro

: 50 per cent of the population is :
living in government-supported :
: or -subsidized housing. And

: the future influencers—the

: current students—are looking
pessimistically at what can

: be and what probably will

: be: a government with a fist

: full of dollars and a region at
its knees. Hong Kong is not

: what it once was. Shanghai,

: Shenzhen, and Guangzhou

: have now taken Hong Kong’s

: dominance as China’s gateway
: from the west. It can be said

: that Hong Kong needs China

: more than China needs Hong
: Kong.

However, Hong Kong’s

culture and the Hong Kong
: people have long been removed

brella }

opinions // 15

 

: from the mainlander’s ideals

and values. A simple point is

: that the two regions don’t even

: speak the same language. There
: is no doubt in my mind that the
: two places need one another,

: but with a strong desire to take

: steps further apart, I accept

: the fact that those of Hong
Kong are identifying more with
: Western culture as opposed to

: the traditional Chinese way of

: handling politics.

People of Hong Kong want

money and they want status

: within the global economy—

: not just China’s. We know

: what it would be if it stays.

: I’m interested to see what the

: people of Hong Kong can do if
: they depart further.